Zaqhwan Zaidi Faces Tough Debut at WSBK

Petronas MIE Racing Honda team Gears Up for Round 2 After quite a Challenging Season Opener.

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National rider Mohd Zaqhwan Zaidi endured a tough debut in the World Superbike Championship (WSBK) at Phillip Island, Australia, after failing to qualify for the race. 

Competing in the elite WorldSBK class with Petronas MIE Racing Honda, the 28-year-old Malaysian was unable to meet the 105% qualifying rule, recording a best lap of 1:34.445s over a second outside the cutoff set by pole-sitter Nicolo Bulega (1:28.824s).

Zaqhwan’s limited track time was a key challenge, having only tested the Honda CBR1000RR-R during the final pre-season session last Tuesday. Travel complications and adaptation struggles further hampered his performance. 

Despite the setback, he remains determined to improve, stating, “We need more track time and different setups to help my riding. The team has worked hard, and I will do all I can to prepare for the next rounds.”

His teammate Tarran Mackenzie, who started 21st on the grid in Race 2, was making steady progress in 20th place but saw his race cut short after crashing at Turn 6 on lap eight.

Meanwhile, fellow Malaysian rider Syarifuddin Azman, competing in the WorldSSP class for Petronas MIE Racing Honda, secured 17th place in Race 1 and 19th in Race 2. His teammate, Kaito Toba, delivered a solid performance, finishing ninth in the final race of the Australian round.

With the season opener now complete, Petronas MIE Racing Honda has just over a month to prepare for Round 2 of WorldSBK, set to take place at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve in Portugal from 28-30 March. 

The team is also working on organizing a test session to help rookie Zaqhwan Zaidi gain valuable track time before the next race weekend.